The word/term 'micropub' is a new one in the English language and, at the point this page was written (August 2012), the word micropub didn't exist - it was neither in the OED or accepted as a 'Scrabble word'.

As such, there is no 'official definition' of the word (by the way, micropub is in no way related to the term microbar - as this is used to represent a unit of pressure equal to one millionth of a bar!).

So, what is a micropub?As the name suggests, a micropub is generally considered to refer to a pub that is small (or very small) - but that's about it.However, most places that call themselves micropubs also adhere to the following;

No Bar - micropubs are often too small to even have a bar!

No Fruit Machines - these take-away the original concept of a pub (but you might find games like Shove Ha'penny or Cribbage being enjoyed).

No TVs or Juke Boxes - these also take-away the original concept of a pub (a place to enjoy a quiet drink and talk to friends - or talk to strangers, who quickly become friends).

No 'Manufactured' Beers - where beer is concerned, a true micropub will only sell 'Real Ale'. A micropub does not sell lager (though rumour has it that a micropub has, in the past, sold a lager type of ale that had been brewed so that it meet the requirements of being a 'Real Ale' - but that is just a rumour).

NO LAGER - we'll say that again as this is the golden rule of any micropub, NO lager whatsoever. This simple fact is on display at the Micropub Association's website: Click here for the Micropub Association's site. In a true micropub, you cannot even say the word lager - if you say that word, then you are expected to put something (20p or more) in the charity jar in the pub (if you need to mention this drink, a few polite people might say 'the L word'. But the vast majority, the realistic and truthful people, describe it accurately and use the term 'cold, fizzy urine').

No Spirits - again, a true micropub does not sell spirits. The range is usually Ale, Cider & Wine - with soft-drinks available for the driver and the children (generally, these are traditional English drinks, such as dandelion and burdock, ginger beer, cloudy lemonade and orange squash - tap water is normally on offer to).

Although pubs are closing all over the country, micropubs (and micro-breweries) seem to be a growing trend. That is particularly true here in Kent (The Butcher's Arms in Herne is considered the original micropub - it opened in 2005 and started the boom in the micropub concept).

On the Isle-of-Thanet, there are currently four micropubs (a fifth is opening in Birchington this month - March 2013). There are also a couple of pubs that refer to themselves as micropubs, but, in the opinion of this site's author, are too large to be true micropubs (though they do meet the other requirements).

To paraphrase one of Britain's unofficial National Anthems, Land of Hope & Glory - Kent, and the whole of the UK, are the 'Land of Hops & Glory!' (my apologies to A C Benson who wrote to original words for Edward Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 in 1902).

Below are links to The Butcher's Arms in Herne (the pub that started the micropub revolution), two other micropubs in Thanet and Thanet's own branch of the Campaign for Real Ale -